By Krishna Dharma das and Chintamani Dhama dasi
This article examines the progression from sraddha to nishtha and highlights the vital role of sadhu sanga in this journey. When the sadhu sanga is properly performed, one’s initial faith is informed and properly developed. One can then undertake the devotional practices, or bhajana-kriya, correctly. In the early stages of bhajana-kriya, we still engage in materialistic activities that disrupt our devotional practice. However, as we continue practising the right sadhu sanga and bhajana kriya, we gradually purify our hearts of desires that hinder our steadiness in practice. This purification process is known as anartha nivritti. As purification deepens, the quality and quantity of our sadhu sanga and bhajana kriya improve. When sufficiently purified, we reach the stage of nishtha, where illicit sense gratification no longer interrupts our devotional service. Conversely, if our sadhu sanga is of poor quality, our initial faith becomes misinformed, as does our bhajana kriya. Consequently, we will not be purified of the undesirable tendencies within our hearts, and even after many years, we do not achieve self-control. Below, we discuss what we understand to be the correct progression from sraddha to nishtha, and where we think current institutional policies might impede devotees’ healthy progression.
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Source: https://www.dandavats.com/?p=116912
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